To Let Go
by checkerboxed
Summary: Drabble series. Drabble One: Accepting. Ryoki doesnt realise that he fails to accept Hatsumi for who she is, and she knows that no one but her can get it through to him.


**

* * *

Disclaimer: I don't own Hot Gimmick; I don't own any of the characters, blah blah blah. **

* * *

**Drabble One**: Ac**c**_e_pt_i_**n**g 

by Checkerboxed

* * *

He stood silently, leaning against the railing that held him back from falling, a lone figure on the roof. The wind toyed with his hair and he brushed it back impatiently, tapping his fingers on the railing. 

She ducked back behind the wall as he turned and stared hard at the stairway, looking for her. He heard him mutter something like, "Damn slowpoke" before he turned away again, staring off over the roofs of the surrounding buildings.

_He was always impatient._

She sighed, closing her eyes for a minute and pushing her purse back up her arm from where it had slid down. She watched as he turned slowly from the view, pressing both hands against the railing and leaning back, crossing his ankles as he faced the doorway.

_He was always cool and nonchalant._

She wondered if anyone had ever broken through his resolve, if anyone had ever gotten beneath his skin.

_No. Nobody had._

With another sigh, she straightened her skirt and stepped into view. His eyes snapped open at the sound of her footsteps. They narrowed and he stood up, closing the distance between them with sharp, agitated footsteps and delivering a sharp slap to the side of her head.

_He was always angry._

"Ow!" She whispered, glaring up at him. "What was that for?"

Just as suddenly as he had stood up, he pulled her into his arms. "For being late, and standing me up." She could feel the anger in his voice- but she blushed when she heard him mutter under his breath, "And for being so damn cute".

_He was always concealing feelings that rarely ever bubbled to the surface._

She leaned against him, enjoying the feel of his coat. "I'm sorry, Ryoki... my mother wanted me to deliver a pie to Mrs. Niwa. Her daughter's sick, you know..."

He hugged her tighter, making her wince. "I don't care. I'm more important-"

She narrowed her eyes, pushing him away. For once, she resolved, she was going to stand up to him. "No."

His eyes widened in shock. "What?"

She crossed her arms, feeling bold. "No. I'm sorry Ryoki. I love you, and you know that, but you need to understand that you aren't the only center to my universe. Sometimes you need to just accept that there are other things more important than you, like helping a family who's sick or... spending time with _my_ family."

_He was going to explode. _

He narrowed his eyes. "How can you say that? After all I've done for you..."

She moved towards him again, determined to make him understand. "Ryoki. Listen to me. You are really, really smart. And I accept that. You have tons of flaws that you don't see. And I accept that. You're sensitive about me being around other guys. _And I accept that_. But there's gotta be some things about _me_ that _you_ accept, too."

He stared at her. "Did you really just stand up to me? Did you-" He was gaping now. If she had not been so worried about his reaction, she'd do a little victory dance and then sit in shock at her own daring. But first she was going to make sure that he'd be okay with what she had said.

His blank expression turned to one of anger as her words sunk in, and he took a step toward her. She cringed, expecting a blow. Instead, he pulled her into his arms, burying his head in her neck. She blushed as she always did, her heart pounding as she realized that maybe it would be okay.

"I don't have any flaws," he muttered angrily into her neck. The breath tickled her and she almost started laughing. _Maybe she had been the one to get under his skin._

* * *

Authoress Here. 

I've been reading Hot Gimmick fanfics forever- since the day the first one was posted. And I kept telling myself, "Write one, and write one". But I never got around to it. The other day I went to see if any more fanfics had been posted and I was just like, "Whatever. I'm writing a fanfic."

So here we have it. A drabble series in the making.

Please review, because I Love to know that people like my fanfics. Plus, reviews are brain food for me and I just had midterms. So there.

Love,

Rhia.


End file.
